To what extent is a war justifiable if hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians constitute the victim count? Grave of the Fireflies is an animation set during the few months leading to Japan’s surrender in World War II, focusing mostly on the destruction brought upon by the relentless fire-bombings, air raids, and the eventual usage of nuclear warfare. Seita, a fourteen-year-old boy who is caught in these attacks, along with his four year old sister, Setsuko, split from their mother to escape to nearby shelters. However, their mother reappears fatally-wounded which leave Seita and Setsuko dependent on each other for the rest of their journey of staying alive. As something that inevitably occurs during war periods, death is a major element in the movie and can be represented in several ways, from the death of the mother to the death of Japan’s collective fighting spirit. …show more content…
In this film, Setsuko is the prime example of innocence and optimism, who at the beginning is yet to be tarnished by the evils of war. As Setsuko embodies this naive, free-spirited child, the retention of this spirit is challenged by the circumstances brought on by the several adults that she directly and indirectly interacts with. In this paper, I will be focusing on the adverse war consequences on children like Seita and Setsuko by locating differences between children and adults during the war period, looking at the various child-adult interactions and how they might inflict changes on each individual psychosocially, as well as the distinctive actions and mindsets for each age group when dealing with the
The nineteen year old girl has never left her parents’ house, whereas her partner has physical and psychological scars from the Vietnam war, in the jungle. This contrast between the two individuals’ origin shows the influence one has on the other in their relationship. They mutually help each other getting over their different difficult reality by using their opposite characteristics. They are curious of discovering the other’s current reality, as the girl wants to become an adult and the man needs a hint of innocence. In short, this complementary relationship implies that one’s psychological evolution comes from his/her positive and negative
Most people live a relatively normal day to day life even if we may have our share of mundane problems. If we are asked to describe our emotions, at the very least we can say happy or sad or fine. When we truly love something or take great pleasure in something, most of us tend to wax poetically. In contrast, there are people like Ishmael Beah whose lives started off quite normal but then it took a major wrong turn. From the tender age of ten years, Beah witnessed the horrors of war in his home country, Sierra Leone.
On “October 14, 2003”(Steve Bartman Incident-Wikipedia), Steve Bartman made a mistake that would change his life for good. Alex Gibney made a documentary called “Catching Hell” to explain how one man deserves an apologize from “40,000” (“Catching Hell”) Cub fans for an act that was only human. Many people think Steve Bartman needs to apologize for what he did to the Cubs and their fans, but Alex Gibney has disagreed with the fans.
Field of Dreams is just that, a field that fulfills the dreams of the owner. Field of Dreams, directed by Phil Alden Robinson, is about a farmer from Iowa, Ray, who is out in his field of corn one night and hears a whispering voice call out to him. No one in his family is able to hear the voice, but him. At first he believes he is going crazy until he hears it repeatedly and signs were given to him on the task that needed to be completed. Ray, with the support of his family, decided to do exactly what the voice says, bringing him on an adventure.
Violence consists of savagery, sadism, and power. Victims of violence are usually not liberated from the effect it has on them. In ‘A Long Way Gone’ by Ishmael Beah, he elaborates on his personal effects of violence in which he endures and taken part in. Throughout the book, he suffers the consequences of being part of the Sierra Leone Civil War. Ishmael experiences war flashbacks, nightmares, lost of innocence and a normal life in the result of violence.
This article discusses in detail Beah’s journey as a boy soldier. The article comments on Beah’s feelings, experiences, and reactions when he had to lose childhood and become a child soldier. The article focuses on the point how Beah and children like him become a victim of child abuse due to a civil war.
Mise-en-scéne is crucial to classical Hollywood as it defined an era ‘that in its primary sense and effect, shows us something; it is a means of display. ' (Martin 2014, p.XV). Billy Wilder 's Sunset Boulevard (Wilder 1950) will be analysed and explored with its techniques and styles of mise-en-scéne and how this aspect of filmmaking establishes together as a cohesive whole with the narrative themes as classical Hollywood storytelling. Features of the film 's sense of space and time, setting, motifs, characters, and character goals will be explored and how they affect the characterisation, structure, and three-act organisation.
The film ‘Good Will Hunting’ directed by Gus Van Sant is a movie which follows the life of Will Hunting who is gifted with astonishing skills for maths but whom suffered with a fear of abandonment. He developed a defense mechanism which affected his ability to create long lasting relationships. An important extract from the movie is the scene ‘ It’s not your fault’. This scene conveyed the impact of childhood traumas, the effects of suppressed emotions and the idea of soulmates. These ideas were manifested through the use of various film techniques, such as camera shots and movements, music and dialogue.
A Psychoanalysis on The Wars In human history, war has greatly affected the lives of people in an extremely detrimental way which can be understood in Timothy Findley’s novel The Wars through a psychoanalytic approach in character development and their deterioration; the readers are able to identify the loss of innocence intertwined between characters, the search for self-identity in the symbolic and metaphorical aspect, as well as the essence of life. Those that are not able to overcome these mental challenges may develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or Rape trauma Syndrome, and sadly, some resort to suicide as the last option to escape their insecurities. However, soldiers are not the only ones affected by war; family members also face
The novel focuses on coping with the death and horror of war. It also speaks volumes about the true nature of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the never-ending struggle of dealing with it. In the
Child’s Play, written by Higuchi Ichiyo, is a short novel centred around the growth of children, particularly those associated with the pleasure quarters. The story takes place over a few days, nevertheless, we are given an idea on the backgrounds of the three main characters, Shōta, Midori, and Nobu, and watch them gradually lose their childlike innocence. Although not explicitly stated, the last three paragraphs suggest that all three protagonists have followed the footsteps of their parents and in Midori’s case, her older sister. This essay discusses the impending tragic future of children who are destined to take after the occupations of their family.
N00145563 The Maltese Falcon is a film noir directed by John Huston. The film is based on the novel by Dashiell Hammett of the same name. The film was made and distributed by Warner Bros. and was released in October 1941. In this film, detective Sam Spade, played by Humphrey Bogart, takes on a case from the beautiful but deceptive Miss Wonderly, played by Mary Astor.
O Brother Where Art Thou? is a film that will take you on a perilous journey with Ulysses Everett McGill and his simpleminded cohorts. This film may be set amidst the early 1930’s Great Depression era, but it still has a Homer’s Odyssey feel to it. Down in the dusty and highly racial south, Everett recruits a couple of dimwitted convicts, Pete Hogwallop and Delmar O’Donnell, to help him retrieve his lost treasure and make it back home before his wife marries another suitor.
Death of a Salesman has been extremely influential in regards to theatrical performance and it has been performed by multiple different theatre groups. It has also been made into a movie, which has actors such as Dustin Hoffman as Willy Loman, John Malkovich as Biff Loman, and Kate Reid as Linda Loman. All of these actors’ performances were true to the character and were extremely realistic. It was easy for the audience to get caught up in the characters that these actors portrayed. Throughout the movie, Dustin Hoffman, John Malkovich, and Kate Reid all provided an outstanding performance by ensuring that their facial expressions, body language, and emotions always shined through all the while they were creating realistic characters that were easily believable by the audience.
Japanese Anime. It is arguably the most visually identifiable form of animation, with the Mickey Mouse of Disney and the Bugs Bunny of Looney Tunes. The style has grown from the early Disney-inspired animation to the form we recognize today, such as the Pokémon cartoon series and the critically-acclaimed Spirited Away (2001). But prior to these most recent anime cartoons, there was a realist animated movie, Grave of the Fireflies (1988). It’s a war film that follows similar events that the original author experienced during the end of World War II in 1945.